The boys soccer team defeated the Capuchino Mustangs 4-1 on Friday afternoon.
The Bears quickly kicked off the game in possession, advancing into the Mustangs’ territory. Within one minute, junior center midfielder Tomer Jacobs ripped one toward the goal, but the Mustangs’ goalkeeper blocked the shot.
The Mustangs finally responded to M-A’s numerous scoring attempts by obtaining possession and sprinting into the Bears’ territory. With Capuchino in close range, M-A’s defensive line stayed vigilant and prevented any score attempts from reaching sophomore goalkeeper Torrey Franz.
After multiple back-and-forth possessions, the midfielders slowed the game with dominant control and connecting passes. Seniors midfielder Yandel Hernandez and striker Nathan Thurlow consistently connected passes and attacked the goal for another shot off.
The Mustangs still kept a high intensity, and eventually regained possession. Capuchino dribbled through the middle, but came to an abrupt stop by senior center back Noah de Haaff. De Haaff helped regain possession for the Bears with 20:44 left in the first half.
The Bears maintained their aggressive momentum with the ball, constantly looking for an opportunity to score. M-A’s relentless attacks soon wore out Capuchino’s defense. With an open window, senior midfielder Pablo Martinez took a chance and blasted a shot, traveling over the crossbar and narrowly missing.
With the score still even at 0-0, the ball was constantly switching possession, but Hernandez gained control in the Mustangs’ box. Hernanadez was fouled, so the Bears were awarded a penalty kick. Hernandez faced off with the goalkeeper and smashed the ball right past the goalkeeper’s gloves. The goal gave the Bears a 1-0 lead, with 15:44 left in the first half.
Just minutes later, Hernandez assisted Martinez, and created a perfect window for Martinez to fire a shot in the bottom left corner, bringing the score to 2-0.
After the kick off, the Mustangs’ right winger took hold of the ball and sped down the field. Senior right winger Franklin Aguilar stood him up, turning the ball over to the Bears.
With only five minutes left, Thurlow made his way towards the goal and smashed the ball into the net, bringing the score up to 3-0.
The Bears came into the second half dominant, craving more goals. Junior center midfielder Theo Leslie took a shot, but it rebounded off a Mustangs player, resulting in a corner kick. The ball traveled in a perfect arc and the Mustangs’ defense tried to clear it, but de Haaff swooped in and cracked a shot into the bottom right corner with one minute left, scoring a goal for the Bears and ending the first half with a 4-0 lead.
With an exceptional lead, the Bears’ fierce momentum continued into the second half. After lots of movement in the field an offside and a handball was called on the Bears, leading to a penalty kick. The Mustangs were under pressure, but succeeded in scoring a goal with 28:17 in the second half. The Mustangs’ goal made the game 4-1, and the Bears knew that they had to defend their lead.
Feeling confident, the Mustangs’ winger dribbled down the field, but was stopped by Jacobs’ quick steal. The Bears subsequently made three unsuccessful goal attempts. The game moved slowly, and de Haaff took control of the back line, not letting anything past. The Bears inched towards the goal with only a few minutes left, attempting to make multiple crosses, but were halted by the Mustangs.
Capuchino decided to get rough, and got fouled for an aggressive push from behind, giving the Bears a free kick. The free kick helped M-A advance closer to the goal, but the Mustangs turned up the heat and did another push from behind, resulting in a yellow card. With the final whistle blown, the game ended in a 4-1 win for M-A.
“Coming into the game, we really wanted to end the week off right. Our plan was to rotate guys in, resting our starters after playing three games in the past week. I’m proud of the whole team’s performance, and this win caps off an undefeated week for us,” senior center midfielder Lucas Selvik said.
“This game was a team win where everyone was involved,” Martinez added.
The Bears will face the Pioneer Mustangs at M-A this Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.
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